Koreas mark 59 years since war ended

DEFENDING THE FLAG:Amid the celebrations, a North Korean general warned that Pyongyang will not tolerate insults to leader Kim Jong-un from the US or the South

AP, PANMUNJOM, Korea

An undated photo released on Friday by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via the Korea News Service (KNS) shows military officers and war veterans attending a national meeting to celebrate the 59th anniversary of “victory” in the Korean War at the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium.

Photo: AFP / KCNA via KNS

Elderly North Korean veterans pledged loyalty to their 20-something leader in Pyongyang during Korean War armistice commemorations on Friday that were being closely watched after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reshuffled the military and revealed he is married.

Over the past two weeks, Kim has taken on the title of marshal and replaced his army chief — once a key mentor. Both moves were seen as an effort to build loyalty among the million-man armed forces and solidify his credentials as commander.

North Korea also revealed on Wednesday that the stylish woman at Kim’s side in some public appearances this month is his wife. Images of her walking with Kim were choreographed to show the leader as modern, mature and down-to-earth, analysts said, and contrast sharply to his intensely private father, Kim Jong-il, who ruled for 17 years before his death in December.

Kim Jong-un and his wife were not at Friday’s event. Hundreds of aging veterans were shown on state television in a huge auditorium as Choe Ryong-hae, the military’s top political officer, stood beneath giant portraits of Kim Jong-il and North Korean founder Kim Il-sung and urged the crowd to “follow the leadership of Marshal Kim Jong-un and win 100 out of 100 battles.”

North Korea later set off fireworks. At another location earlier in the day, soldiers from a tank unit named after military officer Ryu Kyong-su, famous in North Korea for leading troops during the Korean War, also staged firing drills.

Ri Kyong-won, a 62-year-old general-grade officer, said that his troops will not tolerate the US or South Korea doing anything to denigrate the North Korean leadership.

The commemorations are meant to kindle patriotism and loyalty in North Koreans, and especially the young, by showcasing veterans who fought for their country, said Kim Yeon-su of Korea National Defense University in Seoul.

Separately, North Korea is filling vacancies left by the sudden dismissal of former army chief Ri Yong-ho. Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) introduced the new military chief, Hyon Yong-chol, as Ri’s successor as a vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party in a dispatch on Friday. Hyon was promoted to vice marshal and chief of the general staff after Ri was dismissed earlier this month. Kim Jong-un chairs the commission.

While South Korea and the US-led UN forces that fought in the Korean War called Friday the 59th anniversary of the armistice that ended the 1950 to 1953 conflict, North Korea calls it a celebration of “victory in the Fatherland Liberation War” and veterans streamed into the capital.

“Airports, railway stations and parking lots were crowded with delegates to the celebrations, their comrades-in-arms, families and relatives, people from all walks of life and youth and students,” KCNA said.

US and South Korean officials marked the armistice at the border village of Panmunjom. Because no peace treaty was signed, the Korean Peninsula remains technically in a state of war.

Ahead of the anniversary, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry reiterated its long-standing demand that the US sign a peace treaty with North Korea to replace the armistice.

Washington says normal ties will only come after North Korea abandons its pursuit of nuclear weapons and takes other steps. International nuclear disarmament talks have been stalled since late 2008, and animosity between the Koreas is high.

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